April 5, 2009

Appointment Letters

Tips for writing effective letters to schedule an appointment:

Mention or restate the purpose for the meeting or other event. Describe what you would like to accomplish so that the other party/parties involved know your expectations.

If you are seeking an appointment as part of a job search, keep the tone of your letter particularly cordial. Briefly mention your qualifications, past experience, and other relevant information; the position you are seeking; when you can meet and when you would be available to begin working; and so forth.

If applicable, mention how the reader will benefit from the appointment.

Include the date you would like to meet or reiterate the date you had planned to meet.

If other people besides the reader will be present, you may wish to mention briefly the other individuals who will attend.

If appropriate, include information such as where the meeting will take place; how long it is intended to last; any items, documents, etc. that the person(s) should bring to the appointment; and so forth.

Indicate by when you need a response to affirm that the reader can attend the meeting. If you intend to contact the person to follow-up, indicate this in your letter.

Include your contact information, such as e-mail address or phone number where you can most easily be reached.

Tips to effectively reschedule an appointment:

If desired, politely state the reason for which you need to reschedule the appointment.

Give a couple of dates and times for which you are available to meet, or mention that you will call (or ask the other person to call you when it is convenient for him/her) to schedule a time that will work for all those involved.

If any other details will change (such as location, those who will attend, etc.), include that information as well.

Indicate by when you need a response to your letter.

Make sure to include your contact information, even if you included it in your first letter when scheduling the original appointment.

Tips to cancel an appointment:

This letter can usually be short and to the point.

Be courteous. You never know when you might have occasion to meet with this person again or desire his/her services or products.

If you must cancel the appointment, do so as soon as possible in order to give the other party adequate notice, especially if you might incur a fee or expense by not canceling by a certain date.

If desired, you can indicate the reason for which you are canceling. However, this is not necessary, and doing so is not always in your best interest.

When writing a letter to offer someone an appointment to a position:

Use a positive tone.

If this letter also serves to praise or congratulate the person, be direct and sincere.

Give as much information as necessary to communicate the scope and importance of the new appointment.

Generally, this letter is one that the reader will greatly appreciate. Therefore, you may wish to use this letter to help build a stronger relationship between yourself and the appointee.

If other individuals are likely to read the letter, it should contain enough information about the appointee’s qualifications that others will recognize that he or she is qualified to fill the position.